Cox's proposal will keep focus on Utah life sciences industry
Brice Wallace
At the recent Utah Life Sciences Summit, Gov. Spencer Cox hinted it was coming. A few days later, he announced a proposal for $7 million to educate people for careers in the life sciences sector.
“What you will hear and what you will see,” he said at the summit, “is an increased focus by my administration specifically on the life sciences, on workforce development, making sure that we have the talent for the jobs of today and the jobs that you’re bringing, the jobs of the future.”
At a news conference announcing the proposal, Cox said the life sciences sector “is part of the bright future of Utah.”
“This $7 million investment comes at the right time and will pay dividends for individuals, families and businesses for generations to come,” the governor said.
On Facebook, the governor said the $7 million would “strategically build an even bigger and better life sciences workforce. With this funding, Utah can reduce the anticipated workforce gap by 40 percent through program expansion, hiring faculty and staff, procuring equipment and providing outreach for student recruitment.”
Highlighted at the industry summit, a study by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah indicates that Utah last year had 1,634 companies focused on research, testing and medical laboratories; medical devices and diagnostics; biosciences-related distribution; and therapeutics and pharmaceuticals. That’s up from 1,000 in the institute’s most recent study, in 2018.
The number of Utah jobs in the industry grew to 182,383 direct and indirect jobs, up from about 130,000 in 2018, and the industry contributed GDP of $21.6 billion in 2022, up from $13 billion in 2018.
Over a longer period, from 2012 to 2022, the number of life sciences jobs in Utah grew by an average of 5.1 percent, compared with 3.5 percent in other states and 3.4 percent in other Utah industries. That put Utah’s 10-year average job growth in the industry at No. 3 out of the 20 states with the largest life sciences employment.
The Gardner Institute report pegged the number of Utah direct jobs in the industry at 54,959, with 127,424 jobs supported in other industries in 2022. Companies contributed about $8 billion in GDP, part of a total economic impact of $21.6 billion.
Utah life sciences workers last year earned an average of $96,000, or 47.6 percent higher than the $65,000 average of other industries in the state.
“We know that this sector is part of the bright future of Utah,” Cox said at the news conference. “We’re so excited for what is already happening here, but we have to meet the needs of today and the needs of tomorrow. And we do that by giving more opportunities to incredible students and companies here in the state of Utah.”
Cox said the proposal “is just the beginning.”
“We hope to do even more over the years to close this gap and to make sure that we have the best jobs available,” he said.
“BioUtah applauds the governor’s life sciences initiative,” Kelvyn Cullimore, president and CEO of the industry association, said in a prepared statement following the governor’s news conference. He noted the announcement was timely, following the Gardner Institute study showing Utah among the fastest-growing life sciences sectors in the nation.
“Building a skilled and future-ready workforce is critical to our industry’s continued success,” Cullimore said. “We look forward to working with the governor, the Legislature and our universities to advance this effort.”
Among those supporting the Cox proposal at the news conference were state Senate Majority Whip Ann Millner, R-Ogden and former president of Weber State University; University of Utah President Taylor Randall; and Utah State University President Elizabeth Cantwell.
“When we have state support and industry partners, magic happens,” Randall said. “The dollars flow, the economy grows and we educate students. Can you think of a happier story than that?”